浙江諸暨市湄池中學 屠小平

In my twenties,I had no idea what would matter in the long term.I'm a smart person,but I didn't think much about my future.Now,at 41,with the benefit of being wise after the event,I can see that some of my decisions mattered a lot.Here are some things that are more important in the long term than I realized.

For one thing,you should develop your marketable skills.Getting the highest level of education you are able to and want to can give you an advantage.Having a tertiary education （高等教育）or specialized training makes it easier to face the fierce competition,and the jobs available to you are often more interesting,creative,and satisfying.

For another,you should spend your time wisely.I spent a lot of energy in my early 20s on relationships that were going nowhere.Most of my free time was taken up by my boyfriends.I knew early on I wasn't going to marry these guys.__3__Instead of keeping my boyfriends happy,I could have used that time to work on becoming the person I wanted to be.

The most important,I think,is to face your demons （惡魔）.Like many young people,I had issues left over from childhood that I didn't want to face.It wasn't until a few years ago that I realized how important it is to deal with and take responsibility for your own issues.

A.The time I invested in those relationships was mostly wasted.

B.Another thing is to deal with your problems at your early age.

C.Ignoring your past issues can leave you various consequences.

D.In my work and study,it meant I pushed myself to exhaustion.

E.I lived moment to moment,without much thought or planning.

F.Not everyone needs to get a degree,but the world is competitive.

G.Besides the above two,you should also learn to say yes or no to love.

Reading Check

Fill in each blank with a proper sentence below the text.

Language Study

Sentences for writing

It wasn't until a few years ago that I realized how important it is to deal with and take responsibility for your own issues.

【信息提取】“it be+被強調(diào)部分+that+...”構(gòu)成的是強調(diào)句式；take responsibility for意為“對……負責”。

【句式仿寫】直到我看了這篇文章，我才了解到這些事情很重要。